The Clock Ticks On
by BilkyFizzleweisIII
Summary: Beckett thought that if she sat still enough, that if she broke the clock into millions of tiny, unmoving pieces, it would keep time from taking Castle away.


**Hello!**

**I would like everyone to know, that if you're looking for a happy, tra la la, fairytale ending sort of story, then this isn't for you, at all. This one shot is sad, there's no getting past that. It's also a bit dark, for obvious reasons. And has a very un-fairytale like ending, if you want to find out why, then you'll have to read it.**

**Also, this is my first genuine angst piece, all my others have turned into a monumental face palm. Sometimes my writing can be a little too overdramatic. Alright...that was a big under exaggeration. All my angst pieces have turned out so overdramatic that sometimes I laugh. I sure hope that this isn't one of those pieces.**

**I bet you're wanting to read the story now. So, enough of my rambling! Please enjoy this story and tell me what you think! **

**Disclaimer: I do not own Castle or any of it's wonderful and colorful characters.**

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**The Clock Ticks On**

Beckett stared at the clock, watching as another second disappeared into history. Every time the clock moved even a centimeter forward, the string that's holding Castle's life loosened its tie a little more.

People would come and go, telling Beckett that she shouldn't blame herself for what happened. Beckett would just sit there, stiller than a statue, whispering 'I know.'

In all honesty, Beckett _didn't _blame herself. She found that she couldn't because, well, it wasn't her fault. It was Castle who chose to storm into the building without caution.

_…People gathered around the brick building, covered in bulletproof vests and armed with gun, they talked amongst themselves, chattering about the current mission. Beckett and Castle stood in front of the surrounding group, ready to charge._

_"Remember Castle, no mistakes. This guy's smart." Beckett told Castle, making sure everything was secure._

_Castle rolled his eyes. "No screw up's, got it. I think I can manage that."_

_Beckett shot Castle a smirk. "You better. Or Gates' will have your head."_

_Castle chuckled, fixing his writers vest. "Beckett, Gates' will have my head either way."_

_"Alright," she said. "Then if you screw up, I'll have your head mounted on my wall."_

_Laughing, Castle looked towards the building and muttered. "Don't doubt it."_

_But then, Castle got a glimpse of someone through the window. It was a young girl, maybe sixteen, on the ground. A cloth was wrapped around her eyes and mouth and her hands and feet were bound._

_Castle threw away all common sense and ran towards the building, ignoring Beckett's yells to stay back. He pushed open the door and stepped in._

_An explosion rippled through the air, making everyone duck for cover. The force of the blast pushed Castle out of the building, flinging him into the air like a ragdoll. _

_Every single person stared in horror as Castle's body hit the ground, with a sickening thump. His body was covered with burns and his fingers were charred to the point they weren't even there. His arms and legs twisted in ways they shouldn't. By just looking at his mutilated body, you wouldn't be able to tell he was a person._

_Beckett and Ryan and Esposito ran faster than they had ever ran before, pushing through the shocked crowd of police officers. Once they were at Castle's body, Ryan and Esposito kneeled down, frantically checking for a pulse._

_Beckett could only stand there with bile rising in her throat as Ryan and Esposito screamed for help…_

Beckett shuddered and lifted her eyelids. Every time she closed her eyes, no matter it be for sleep or just blinking, the memory of what happened was there, haunting her like a vengeful ghost. She couldn't get the image of Castle's horribly disfigured body out of her head.

He looked a tiny bit better now, but that's because almost every inch of his body had some sort of gauze on it. It also helped that his arms and legs were set back in place.

It didn't stop Beckett from wanting to puke.

Life support was the reason he was alive at this very moment. The machine forced his chest to rise and fall, trying to get him to the point where he could manage to breath by himself. She looked back at the clock and realized that the hand crept closer and closer to ten o'clock.

That's when they would take Castle off life support.

Her hand held his wrapped one and she told him all sorts of encouraging words, hoping they would somehow coax him awake. Castle just lay there, not making a twitch of movement. Her voice became more urgent as the hand ticked dangerously close to the ten o'clock mark.

Castle couldn't die. The universe just couldn't get rid of him because of some stupid mistake. It wasn't fair that he was on the verge of death just because he wanted to save someone.

At ten o'clock, doctors marched into the room, and started removing all the tubes and wires. Beckett held her breath, waiting impatiently for the news.

On June 2nd, 2013, Richard Castle was declared brain dead.

Through her tears, all Beckett could think about was breaking that clock. It was its fault that Castle was dead. She wiped furiously at her eyes, wanting more than anything to smash the killer into millions of tiny, unmoving pieces. It deserved to die, not Castle.

She stood up and took the clock off the wall, throwing it to the ground with a hatred she never felt before. She looked at the broken glass, and then slid to the ground, sobbing uncontrollably.

The clock ticked on.

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**A.N. I'm sorry if Beckett acted a bit OOC. I thought she did. Ah well, please review. I'd love to know what you guys thought of this story!**


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